Year in Review: 21st Century Democrats in 2012

As we enter a new year full of opportunities to advance the progressive agenda, we want to take stock of what we accomplished together in 2012. Whether campaigning for candidates or organizing around an issue, our success comes from the dedication and energy of 21st Century Democrats’ supporters working together. We thank you for all the time, money and attention that you contribute to our shared goals.

The election dominated 2012, and we never lost focus on November. Starting in January, with the Republican presidential candidates still in their primary, we made sure people knew the real story about Mitt Romney and Bain Capital. When the GOP tried to package Romney as a leader on the economy, we focused on what Bain did to the employees of the companies it took over, reminding the public that we need leaders who fight for the people, not Wall Street.

We used our experience and network to counter the disastrous Supreme Court Citizens United decision and attempts by super-PACs, controlled and funded by the likes of Karl Rove and the Koch brothers, to buy the election. We made sure your voices were heard when we fought back against the flood of dark money, and when we committed early to the reelection of Senators Sherrod Brown of Ohio and Jon Tester of Montana, two of the extremists’ top targets.

We represented our supporters at the Democratic National Convention, bringing together progressive Democrats for a chance to network and meet special guests, like Jim Hightower and Bill Press.

During the 2012 election cycle, we endorsed 12 candidates in some of the most expensive and competitive races in the country. Come Election Day, voters recognized the importance of the progressive agenda by electing 11 of them. We worked with supporters like to you to volunteer, make donations and support our endorsed candidates in every way, and we know that’s why our candidates had such a successful year.

We capped off the campaign with a special post-election briefing with Jim Hightower, Senator Sherrod Brown campaign manager Sarah Benzing, Kathleen Kennedy Townsend and 21st Century Democrats board member Jere Glover. Hundreds of you tuned in to hear them answer your questions on the election results and what comes next for the administration and the progressive movement.

Of course, there was more to the year than the election. We never stopped fighting back against Tea Party zealots and their outrageous positions, from their relentless campaigning against Obamacare to the war on women led by Rush Limbaugh.

Throughout 2012, we collected thousands of responses to our petitions, which give our campaigns political clout, and our surveys, which told us what issues are most important to you and where you wanted your resources focused. We got our message out to thousands on Twitter and Facebook, and we rolled out new designs of our websites, allowing us to better communicate with existing supporters and reach out to new ones.

We also saw substantial growth in the audience for our AmericasDemocrats.org netcast, which had downloads in the tens of thousands. The netcast explores progressive perspectives on public policy, economic debates and national politics, and features weekly segments with Jim Hightower and Bill Press.

Through our interviews with top Democrats and progressive leaders every week, we brought listeners the latest news, like on Wisconsin and its gubernatorial recall; in-depth discussions on the Supreme Court health care, immigration and campaign finance decisions; and expert analyses of the presidential and congressional campaigns across the country.

We also featured talks with friends like Pete Seeger about the legacy of Woody Guthrie, Kathleen Kennedy Townsend on the role of religion in politics, and Barney Frank about marrying his partner and leaving Congress.

We are ending this very productive year by making sure the president hears your “no compromise” message. We will continue to call for the president and Democrats to stand strong for progressive values. And as you know, we have already seen the signs of conservative extremists intensifying their campaigns in places like Michigan, and we will be there to answer them.

Clearly, moving into 2013, we have many opportunities to further our agenda and make sure we protect our hard-fought progress.

We couldn’t be more proud of what we accomplished this year, and we are so thankful to you for making our work possible. We know we can count on you to make 2013 equally successful.

Thank you for your continued support.

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